If you are a member of the military and on active duty, or you have already served your country on active duty in the past, there are a number of loan programs you can use to buy a home. These programs are only for veterans and military personnel; civilians who are not married to military personnel cannot apply for any VA loan program, giving you the edge in the mortgage industry. If you want to know how to find the best loan programs for past and present soldiers and officers, the following information will act as a guide. 

Online News Articles

Count on the news to publicize what programs are available to veterans and serving officers. Some of these articles even rank the programs for you while providing a synopsis of benefits and requirements. The articles are not hard to find when you do a quick internet search. 

Consumer Reports Magazine

A well-informed soldier is a prepared soldier, right? In regards to getting the best deals on VA loans, you should consult consumer reports, which are published both online and in magazine form on a monthly basis. Special attention is given to mortgage programs, which is of interest to everyone who wants to buy a home, military status or no military status. You are most likely to find a special online section devoted to these special loans, while the magazine version will give you civilian loan programs to which you can compare the VA programs. 

Banks with Special Approval/Certification to Help Military Families

Not just any bank is allowed to advertise and offer a VA loan. There is a rigorous selection process that determines which banks can offer these loans. Find out which banks are in your area, and then talk to the lenders individually to see which loan programs these banks are certified to offer. 

Your C.O. (or Anyone Else Who Bought a Home with a VA Mortgage)

Higher-ranked officers and soldiers with families almost always have mortgages through a VA loan program. If that applies to your C.O., or to fellow soldiers, ask them what they think about their chosen programs and what they might have done differently if they were given a do-over button. If they say that they made the best possible choice, ask them what and why their chosen program was best for them. Most of them will probably say that the terms were best suited to their financial position at the time that they took out their loans. 

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